Poetry for the Many
Jeremy Corbyn and Len McCluskey collaborated to help achieve the biggest electoral success for socialism in recent British history. The two men share a passionate belief in a fairer, more equal Britain, encapsulated in Labour’s election slogan “For the many, not the few.”
That slogan, inspired by Shelley’s famous poem The Masque of Anarchy, points to something else the two have in common: a lifelong enthusiasm for poetry. In this sparkling anthology they discuss the poems that have moved and enlightened them. Their choices travel over centuries and continents, with poets ranging from Shakespeare and Juana de la Cruz, through William Blake and Emily Dickinson, to Bertolt Brecht, Stevie Smith and Linton Kwesi Johnson.
Rounding out the collection are appreciations of poems selected by guest contributors Melissa Benn, Rob Delaney, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Ken Loach, Morag Livingstone, Francesca Martinez, Karie Murphy, Maxine Peake, Michael Rosen, Alexei Sayle and Gary Younge.
With the burgeoning popularity of poetry, especially among Gen Z, this joyful celebration of the power of verse is bound to delight and inspire across a wide audience.
All royalties from sales of this book will be donated to the Peace and Justice Project.
Jeremy Corbyn is the Member of Parliament for Islington North and was Leader of the Labour Party between 2015 and 2019.
Len McCluskey was, until last year, the General Secretary of Britain’s largest trade union, UNITE. He is the author of the recently published memoir Always Red.